Jon Stojan
In Mediterranean cooking, there is one ingredient that is considered so essential that it goes beyond just a simple flavor or dressing and becomes the heart and soul of the cuisine: cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil. Because of its many uses and delicious taste, olive oil has long been a valued fixture in kitchens all around the world; however, when it comes to choosing the absolute best, one name shines brightly among the rest – Oleavanti.
Ori Menashe, the chef/co-owner of Bestia, Bavel, and Saffy’s, calls Oleavanti “the Ferrari of olive oils.” Dane Rivera in Uproxx raved about Oleavanti’s Ehden Grove olive oil saying, “Drizzle it on your meats, use it as a base for a sauce, dip bread in it… whatever you want. But slow down and appreciate this stuff. Oleavanti is by far the best olive oil I’ve ever tasted, and I just tasted 14 bottles in a single day!” The words of these seasoned tasters highlight the exceptional quality that Oleavanti brings to the table.
Oleavanti’s journey begins with its founder, Carol Saadé, a Ph.D. food scientist and native of Lebanon. With the encouragement of Karen Rose at Chicago’s City Olive, Carol was inspired to introduce her family’s extra-virgin olive oil to the American market. Chef Perry Hendrix of Avec Restaurant was a key figure in getting Oleavanti started, liberally using their oil in his cooking.
Oleavanti produces their extra-virgin olive oils from two groves in Northern Lebanon. Ehden Grove extra-virgin olive oilis the epitome of rustic excellence. The fruits of souri and aayrouni olive trees, some over 500 years old, are blended in this oil giving a velvety texture and pungent, rich flavor, and making it an ideal partner for a variety of culinary creations such as hummus, pasta, and salad. Qadisha Grove, made exclusively from souri olives, has a more cosmopolitan flavor, and is used in several Southern California restaurants to enhance their offerings.
In addition to their excellent olive oils, Oleavanti offers a variety of high-quality specialty products on their website such as raw honey, pomegranate molasses, pine nuts, sumac, and za’atar all sourced from artisanal producers by Carol. Oleavanti is a one-stop shop for gourmet enthusiasts because of their dedication to authenticity and excellence in everything they offer.
Oleavanti’s dedication to authenticity and quality sets it apart from its competitors. In a time when fraud and adulteration contaminate the olive oil market, Oleavanti stands out as a model of authenticity. Because of their strict quality standards, Oleavanti extra-virgin olive oil is of the finest caliber. In every bottle, Oleavanti guarantees the freshness and flavor of its oils through rigorous analytical testing and sensory evaluation by certified panels.
Lately, the olive oil sector has been beset by several challenges. The Mediterranean region’s ability to produce olive oil was seriously impacted by the 2022 and 2023 growing seasons. Droughts, extreme heat, frosts, and severe weather all caused havoc on olive trees, which led to a sharp drop in production and a significant increase in the cost of extra-virgin olive oil.
Due to this, Oleavanti is unwavering in its resolve to provide its clients with premium olive oil. With the experience of the Saadé family at the helm and the millennia of olive cultivation in the Levant, Oleavanti is sure to flourish and give the world a luxurious taste of the enigmatic East.
The Oleavanti crew is a close-knit unit committed to maintaining the greatest caliber of work. Carol’s team is headed by patriarch Nakhlé Saadé, as well as Marie Saadé, the company’s graphic stylist, Boutros Saadé, who studied at the Olive Oil School of Spain, and co-founder Tony Gualtieri, an Italian American from a family of winemakers, with a background in the mathematics of food sensory analysis.
Oleavanti has established itself as an essential ingredient for any cook that appreciates freshness, great taste, and purity. Oleavanti’s extra-virgin olive oils are a shining example of quality in a market rife with substandard products.Oleavanti is more than simply an olive oil—it is the distillation of centuries of experience, a dedication to excellence, and a journey driven by passion.